freeze-frame
noun
plural freeze-frames
1
a
: a frame of a motion-picture film that is repeated so as to give the illusion of a static picture
b
: a static picture produced from a video recording
On one of the desktop monitors is a freeze-frame from Little Women, Gerwig's new film …—
Chloe Malle
Chloe Mallea freeze-frame image
2
: something resembling a freeze-frame (as in reflecting or preserving a particular moment in time)
We should acknowledge that these pandemic curves are only freeze-frames of a situation still very much in flux …—Francesca Melandri
Francesca Melandri
freeze-frame
transitive verb
freeze-framed; freeze-framing; freeze-frames
… I freeze-framed a scene in the promo for Monday's show and compared it to online photos of the hotel …
—Debra Yeo
Debra Yeo
Examples of freeze-frame in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The freeze-frame captured Chiefs receiver Tyquan Thornton on his back and a defender smothered atop him, keeping Thornton’s face hidden from view, the football hidden from view and just about everything hidden from view other than a lone finger pointing to the sky.
—Kansas City Star, 22 Sep. 2025
Bertie Gregory freeze-framed the moment fledgling emperor penguin chicks walk along the edge of an ice shelf.
—Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Each of the photos highly commended in the prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition could be a freeze-frame from some mini drama.
—Issy Ronald, CNN Money, 26 Aug. 2025
The list is long; this is a very dense and layered film that fans are going to freeze-frame and see stuff and spot stuff.
—Gary Graff, Billboard, 6 Aug. 2025
In the early ’90s prehistoric age before the internet lived up to the promise of a worldwide web, and before the dawn of social media, Simpsons obsessives freeze-framed their VCRs to spot inside jokes in background scenes.
—Keith Murphy, Time, 24 July 2025
The Barracuda goes over the edge, and there’s a Thelma & Louise-style freeze-frame implying that hero and villain are about to plummet to their deaths.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 12 July 2025
But what lingers is the quiet emptiness that comes after the final freeze-frame, after the song ends and the curtain falls.
—arkansasonline.com, 10 July 2025
That’s Miller disposing of a body in the kinetic opening before hitting the streets, blasting the head off one bad dude, getting thrown from the hood of another guy’s muscle car — in slow-mo, Ponciroli’s favorite device — and shooting at the driver as a freeze-frame leaves him hanging.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
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Kansas City Star, 22 Sep. 2025
Bertie Gregory freeze-framed the moment fledgling emperor penguin chicks walk along the edge of an ice shelf.
—Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Each of the photos highly commended in the prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition could be a freeze-frame from some mini drama.
—Issy Ronald, CNN Money, 26 Aug. 2025
The list is long; this is a very dense and layered film that fans are going to freeze-frame and see stuff and spot stuff.
—Gary Graff, Billboard, 6 Aug. 2025
In the early ’90s prehistoric age before the internet lived up to the promise of a worldwide web, and before the dawn of social media, Simpsons obsessives freeze-framed their VCRs to spot inside jokes in background scenes.
—Keith Murphy, Time, 24 July 2025
The Barracuda goes over the edge, and there’s a Thelma & Louise-style freeze-frame implying that hero and villain are about to plummet to their deaths.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 12 July 2025
But what lingers is the quiet emptiness that comes after the final freeze-frame, after the song ends and the curtain falls.
—arkansasonline.com, 10 July 2025
That’s Miller disposing of a body in the kinetic opening before hitting the streets, blasting the head off one bad dude, getting thrown from the hood of another guy’s muscle car — in slow-mo, Ponciroli’s favorite device — and shooting at the driver as a freeze-frame leaves him hanging.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Cite this Entry
“Freeze-frame.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/freeze-frame. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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